Dam removal option should be on the ballot

It is true people say outlandish things, one such example is found in Mr. Quandt's own letter to the editor ("Removing Great Dam could be costly mistake") asserting that the fish population that inhabited the Exeter River was abundant in number only due to "a huge quantity of raw sewage going into the river."

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seacoastonline.com

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Posted Dec. 17, 2013 at 2:00 AM

Posted Dec. 17, 2013 at 2:00 AM

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To the Editor:

It is true people say outlandish things, one such example is found in Mr. Quandt's own letter to the editor ("Removing Great Dam could be costly mistake") asserting that the fish population that inhabited the Exeter River was abundant in number only due to "a huge quantity of raw sewage going into the river." As stated on page 3-105 of the Exeter River Great Dam Removal Feasibility and Impact Study, "the entire lower Exeter River impoundment from the Great Dam upstream to the Pickpocket Dam, consisting of approximately 7.5 river miles, has been listed as impaired since 2006 due primarily to occasional low dissolved oxygen levels, which can adversely affect fish population and other aquatic life."

Mr. Quandt goes on to equate the removal of the dam to "draining the river" as if the river will dry up and cease to exist once the dam is gone. He continues conflating the two, by likening the dam to the river itself stating, "I don't think removing Exeter's only natural resource will do a lot to reduce [their] problems."

In response to proponents like myself who would like to see the river restored to its natural state, Mr. Quandt begs the question "what is the natural state?" A natural state is defined as being a wild primitive state untouched by civilization, what part of that is not understood? The dam is an unnatural, man-made structure.

The dam's purpose, a wholly utilitarian one, was to provide a source of water power to the mills that lined the banks of the river. The Great Dam has since gone from a tool of private industry to a public liability for the town's residents.

Besides not "withstanding a 50-year flood" the Great Dam has namely increased flooding to many neighborhoods, including my own. There is only so much water surrounding earth can absorb, once at capacity this water will find its way into resident's yards and basements.

Thanks to the impoundment that is the Great Dam, it has also increased the areas of standing water and consequently more places for mosquitoes to spawn; increasing the threat of Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE), which has already been detected in Exeter.

Save for Frank Ferraro and Don Clement, the other three board members have been obstructing the motion to hold a vote on whether the issue of dam removal should even be put on the ballot to be presented to us, the voters.

Mr. Quandt, I don't stand to financially gain should Exonions vote to remove the dam, but myself and many neighbors whom I've spoken to stand to lose should the remaining board members continue to prevent a vote on this issue.